Darrell Gascho has been wanting to get back in the restaurant business and now he's got a new gig.

He takes over Monday, March 3, as the head cook at Constant Spring, 219 S. Main St., Goshen.

Jesse Shoemaker has been in that role and elevated the level of food and flavor coming out of the small kitchen at the bar that serves local and organic salads, sandwiches and ethnic food alongside its craft beer.

He's moving on to run the kitchen at the new Goshen Brewing Co. when it opens this fall. Until then, he's going to help at Venturi.

Gascho returns to the food business after some church and consulting work. He worked in the kitchens for Checkerberry Inn and Bread & Chocolate before overseeing the food prep at The Electric Brew and Maple City Market.

Gascho and Shoemaker said they're excited about the new ventures and Aaron Nafziger, who owns the Spring, is excited to find someone like Gascho, who has talked often in recent years about his love for feeding people.

He can cook well. His chicken satay with peanut sauce is one of the best versions of that I've had. The salted chocolate chip cookies he made for a reception at the Launchpad, where The Elkhart Truth and other businesses share work space, were simply great.

He said he wants to make simple food with complex flavors. And he has a passion for local food and wants to deepen the connection between local farms and what goes on the plate at the Spring.

The menu will stay the same at first, but he'll develop his own dishes eventually. "I think we'll see some creative, fun, new stuff," Nafziger said.

Gascho said there will be a learning curve, but he doesn't expect it to be too steep. "I've never worked in a restaurant though that served hamburgers and french fries. I have some things to learn," he said.

I'm just glad that Shoemaker and Gascho, who are both talented cooks, will be making interesting food in Goshen.